Regulating risk - why the EU needs laws to guard against land grabbing

Over recent
years, there has been a huge increase in awareness over the role of companies and
financial investors in driving the global land grabbing crisis and its negative
impacts on local people and the environment. However, despite this improved
understanding, the response from the regulators, as well as the corporations
themselves, has so far been to focus on promoting voluntary standards and
mechanisms as the solution.

Global Witness
and Friends of the Earth Europe believe this voluntary approach is fundamentally
flawed. This briefing paper provides evidence and analysis from the ground to
demonstrate why robust, binding regulations are urgently required to address
the problem of European corporate and investor involvement in projects causing
land grabs, deforestation and human rights violations overseas. The
introduction of mandatory solutions will not only reduce the harm caused, but
help align European-based corporate and financial actors, and regulators, with EU
commitments to human rights, development and climate change, while ultimately
also making good business sense.